Sri Lankan Tamil Migration
"The eruption of the civil conflict in Sri Lanka between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam saw mass migration of Tamils to escape the hardships and bitter life of a country torn at war."
Wikipedia article on the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora:
The migrated Tamil population post-1983 is said to be above 800,000.
||Sri Lankan Tamils
TamilNation's Diaspora section. Note the individual countries toward the top of the page. http://www.tamilnation.org/diaspora/
Chart showing net total migration out of Sri Lanka by year using CIA information: http://www.indexmundi.com/g/g.aspx?c=ce&v=27
Definition: This entry includes the figure for the difference between the number of persons entering and leaving a country during the year per 1,000 persons (based on midyear population). An excess of persons entering the country is referred to as net immigration (e.g., 3.56 migrants/1,000 population); an excess of persons leaving the country as net emigration (e.g., -9.26 migrants/1,000 population). The net migration rate indicates the contribution of migration to the overall level of population change. High levels of migration can cause problems such as increasing unemployment and potential ethnic strife (if people are coming in) or a reduction in the labor force, perhaps in certain key sectors (if people are leaving).
Detailed 2004/5 article about the Sri Lankan Tamil migration with many useful links: http://www.forcedmigration.org/guides/fmo032/
Beautiful charts of international migration situation: http://www.nytimes.com/ref/world/20070622_CAPEVERDE_GRAPHIC.html#
Tamil population in 1979, courtesy Satchi Ponnambalam:
2002 article on 'The Tamil Diaspora':